Shadow Of Evil
by Starfox500
Summary: As Legolas recovers from an unexpected effect from Dol Guldur Aragorn comes to visit. Soon they both are in trouble.
1. Shadow

**Disclaimer: Lord of The Rings and its characters are the property of Tolkien.**

* * *

**Shadow Of Evil**

**by Starfox**

The fire in the hearth burned merrily, casting a soft glow onto the figure sitting before it. Legolas had just returned from a two months' patrol to the south, where the elves had cleaned the forest from spiders, orcs and wargs. Now he sat hunched in front of the fire, feeling a chill that the warmth didn't help anything against. He didn't understand it. Elves didn't feel the cold and at least the fire should help.

Finally admitting that something was wrong, he stood, pulled a robe on over his sleeping clothes and left his chambers. He left the family quarters, nodding at the guards as he passed, and headed for Celairdir's quarters. The healer had his rooms next to the family quarters, so actually it were just a few steps. Legolas knocked lightly on his door. It was late in the evening and normally he wouldn't disturb him at that time.

Obviously the healer was still up because it didn't take long for him to open the door.

"Legolas," he greeted, surprise in his voice.

"I'm sorry to disturb you at this time but something is wrong," Legolas said quietly to prevent the guards from hearing.

Celairdir stepped to the side. "Come in," he said.

Legolas stepped inside and Celairdir closed the door. "What do you mean with something is wrong?" the healer asked, motioning to a chair in a silent request that Legolas sat down.

"I feel chilled to the bone, and nothing helps."

Celairdir stepped closer, so he stood directly in front of the younger elf. "Let's see," he murmured, laying one hand on Legolas' chest, the other on his forehead. His face took on a look of deep concentration. Legolas felt a slight tingling and after a time the healer withdrew.

"You have a shadow on your fëa. You have been in the south for too long and it has affected you."

At Legolas' worried look he sat down opposite him. "How long have you been in the south?"

"Two months," Legolas replied.

"And before that?"

"I'm normally leading the patrols in the south so I have been there the last years, when I'm not at the stronghold."

Celairdir nodded. "I think that's the reason that it affects you now. It has built up over the years. You have been exposed for too long. That's also the reason that no other warrior has reported problems so far since you change the patrols regularly."

"Can you do something about it?"

Seeing the worry and uncertainty in Legolas' eyes, he tried to reassure him. "I think so. Although it will not be a quick remedy. Go to your chambers, I'll be with you shortly."

Legolas left and Celairdir headed to the healing rooms to gather some supplies. Within a short time he made his way to Legolas' quarters and knocked on the door.

"Come in," Legolas called.

Celairdir entered and went through to Legolas' bedchamber. There he placed everything he had gathered on a table. He turned towards the younger elf. "This is no malady of the body but of the fëa, so this is serious. I'm taking you off active duty for now until further notice." While he spoke, he prepared athelas and hung a kettle with water over the fire.

"You need to refresh the athelas regularly. It will take time for you to get better, this is not cured in one or two days." He saw the dismay in Legolas' eyes but the younger elf restrained himself from protesting. He knew that Celairdir was being honest with him and that he better followed his instructions.

"Am I confined to my quarters?" he asked.

"No, but you shouldn't be too long away or use athelas where you are. It's important that you stay under its influence the next time. The shadow will lift only slowly. You can't go south again for a long time, so you have to change the patrol rosters." Celairdir took the heated water and poured it into the cup with the athelas. The uplifting fragrance of the plant immediately filled the air.

Legolas groaned. "I'll talk with Galdor tomorrow."

"Please do that. The shadow in the south has grown so you should send the warriors for a maximum of two months before you send them on one of the other patrols. They shouldn't return to the south for at least six months then."

Celairdir poured another cup with athelas and handed it to Legolas. "Drink this. I hope it will help with the chill."

Legolas obeyed, although he doubted that it would help that fast. But even a slight lessening of his condition would be a blessing.

Celairdir nodded satisfied. He squeezed Legolas' forearm reassuringly before he stood. "I'll see you tomorrow. Good night."

"Good night and thank you," Legolas replied.

Celairdir smiled slightly before he left, then he took a deep breath and headed to Thranduil's quarters. He didn't look forward to tell his friend about his son's condition.

* * *

Like Legolas had expected he didn't find sleep that night. After a few hours of tossing and turning he finally got up and started to check the duty rosters. They would need to overwork everything.

As it grew later he finally decided he could summon Galdor without disturbing his rest. So he went out and found Galion in the corridor.

"Good morning, Galion. Would you please send for Galdor and ask him to come to my quarters? He should be at the training grounds at this time."

"Good morning, my Prince. It will be done."

"Thank you, Galion."

It didn't take long for Galdor to arrive. His friend entered and raised an eyebrow as he noticed the smell that permeated the room. "Athelas?" he asked.

Legolas sighed. "Please sit down, we have a lot to discuss."

Casting his friend a concerned look, Galdor sat down opposite Legolas.

The prince took a deep breath, then he told Galdor what had happened the previous evening.

Galdor leaned back. "Celairdir is right, this is serious. Yes, you were leading the patrols in the south for several years while our warriors were exchanged, but other elves could be affected too. I should have insisted more firmly that we exchange posts more often." He looked slightly guilty. He hadn't objected to Legolas leading the patrols in the south for years despite knowing that these patrols were the hardest.

"You couldn't know what would happen," Legolas reassured him.

There was a short knock at the door and Thranduil entered the sitting room. He looked at Legolas with some concern.

"Good morning, Ada," Legolas greeted.

Galdor inclined his head. "My Lord."

"Good morning." Thranduil came over to the table and sat down. "Celairdir told me what is going on. It looks like the patrols need to be reworked."

Legolas sighed. "Fortunately we were exchanging the patrols regularly since none of our warriors should be exposed to the south for too long."

"You only forgot to exchange the captains regularly, then," Thranduil said wryly.

"Legolas was of the opinion that he couldn't ask more of his warriors than he was willing to give," Galdor chimed in. "He just 'forgot' that the warriors only have a two months' turn while he went south for many years now and that we would willingly take over for a while."

"As Celairdir made clear, this has to change," Thranduil gazed at his son.

"We are working on it. Celairdir said nobody should go south for longer than two months and they should be placed on another patrol then for six months. So we have to rework the duty rosters. As of now the warriors stay in the south for two months, then move to another patrol and return to the south after two to four months." Legolas pulled the duty rosters over, so that they all could see the entries.

They worked for over an hour until they were satisfied with the changes. Then Galdor took his leave, leaving father and son alone.

"How do you feel?" Thranduil asked quietly.

"Anxious, to be honest. Injuries I can deal with but this…"

Thranduil nodded in understanding. As Celairdir had informed him about this new development the night before he had been more than dismayed and worried. "How is the chill?"

"It's not gone but a bit better."

"Celairdir said that it would take time for you to get better."

Legolas sighed. "I know. Believe me, I want to get rid of the shadow as soon as possible."

"So you will follow his instructions?"

"Yes, of course."

Thranduil glanced out of the window. "It's late morning. Have you eaten yet?"

Legolas only shook his head.

His father got up and went to the door. Legolas could hear him ordering two breakfast plates. Thranduil was obviously concerned and Legolas couldn't blame him for that. He himself had been worried after hearing Celairdir's diagnosis. This was something they didn't have to deal with before.

It didn't take long for the servants to deliver the food and father and son sat down to their late breakfast, talking about what had happened in the time Legolas had been away.

* * *

The next day Legolas and Galdor explained the new schedules to the warriors, asking them to report to Celairdir immediately if anything was amiss. Legolas didn't feel entirely comfortable to tell them of his condition but they needed to clarify why there were the sudden changes and to explain to the warriors what to look out for. For that reason Celairdir accompanied them. The warriors were clearly worried for their prince but the healer quickly reassured them. All warriors who had recently served in the south were told to come and see him, for he could sense the shadow even if they didn't feel its affects.

Legolas would have actually enjoyed the first few days of his confinement if there weren't the nagging fear that the shadow wouldn't dissipate or the uncertainty of how long it actually would take. Galdor, Tinwion and Amarthon did their best to keep him company and distract him but they had their duties and they couldn't help him with the worry. In the evening he often played chess with Feron or Celairdir but all in all it was an unsatisfying situation.

Luckily Celairdir finally confirmed that the shadow was slowly fading and estimated that it could take up to a month for it to vanish entirely. Both, Legolas and Thranduil, were relieved at these news.

Legolas grew bored quickly. Although Thranduil gave him some of his paperwork to keep him busy, that wasn't filling the day and having to stay indoors mostly was showing to be a trying experience.

* * *

For Thranduil it was a trying time too. At first he worried over Legolas' condition. Now, after Celairdir's first tentative positive prognosis he needed to constantly find something to keep his son busy which wasn't easy. He was just talking with Dilloth about a trade agreement when there was a knock at the door.

"Enter," he called.

One of the guards came in, bowing before him. "Forgive me the interruption, Sire, but the human, Estel, has arrived."

Thranduil was surprised. There had been no word from Imladris that a visit was planned. "Is that so," he murmured. "What a coincidence." Inwardly he was glad about the human's visit, since Legolas grew increasingly restless and Estel would be a good distraction. He had been allowed to accompany his brothers on a visit when he turned sixteen and at that time the both of them had gone along well even if they hadn't seen each other for years.

"My son will take care of him, so please give him a guest room in the royal wing and show him to Legolas' quarters."

The guard nodded. "As you wish, Sire." With that he left.

Dilloth looked at his friend. "You are glad that the human has arrived, are you not?"

"Yes, he will prove a good distraction, at least for a few days. Legolas is growing restless and I have a hard time keeping him busy. Celairdir thinks that he will only need a few more days of treatment but I'm unwilling to let him go on patrol immediately after that."

"That's understandable, but knowing your son, he won't see it your way."

Thranduil chuckled. "I know, that's why I'm glad that Estel came."

* * *

Legolas stood on his balcony, looking over the landscape. Only two more days until he finally could return back to normal. He was looking forward to a long stroll through the forest.

There was a knock at his door and he turned from his balcony and entered his sitting room.

"Enter," he called.

One of the guards came in and bowed. "Forgive me the intrusion, my Prince, but a visitor has arrived and the king ordered that I show him to your quarters."

Legolas looked surprised. "Well, show him in then," he ordered, curious who it would be.

The guard went to the door, talking softly with somebody. Finally a figure stepped around the guard, while the guard withdrew and closed the door.

Legolas was more than surprised. "Estel?" he asked. He hadn't seen the human for six years and he had changed a big deal. At his last visit, he had been a youth, still growing and a bit awkward in his own body. Now a young man stood before Legolas.

Estel nodded. "Well met, Legolas. I was heading for Lothlorien and decided to pay the woodland realm a visit."

"That's a pleasant surprise," Legolas went over to the human and they clasped arms. "How are things in Imladris?"

"They are well, although I haven't been home for a few months."

"When have you last eaten?"

"Actually yesterday evening, since I ran out of provisions."

"I'll order us something and then you can tell me all about what happened in Imladris since my last stay and about your journey."

He went to the door and called for one of the guards at the entrance to the royal wings. As he approached Legolas asked him if he could send a servant to fetch two meals, then he thanked the guard and rejoined Aragorn.

It didn't take long for the food to arrive. The servant put it down on the table in the sitting room and Legolas thanked him and dismissed him. "Come, Estel, join me. You must be hungry."

"It's Aragorn now," Estel said softly, sitting down opposite Legolas.

Legolas leaned back. "So Lord Elrond told you."

"You knew?"

"I met your father once, as your mother was expecting you. So yes, I knew that after your father had been killed you were brought to Imladris."

Aragorn started to eat, trying not to wolf down the food. He _was_ hungry. "I can understand that Elrond wanted to protect me, but hearing that you are a whole other person than you thought was hard."

"I can imagine that it's hard to adjust to what you learned about yourself." Legolas started to eat as well. Like usual the food was delicious.

Aragorn put his fork down and stared out onto the balcony. "Yes." He leaned back, looking thoughtful. "I don't want that responsibility. I was perfectly happy to just be Estel."

"I can imagine that. They did it to protect you. The enemy is searching for you. It's not safe to use your real name outside of the elven realms."

"I know," Aragorn agreed. "I'll use another name then."

"That would be wise," Legolas agreed.

"Does your father know?" Aragorn asked hesitantly.

"I told him about Arathorn, so I imagine that he knows that you're Arathorn's son."

The human looked down. "It must not be easy. If Isildur had destroyed the ring when he had the opportunity, we would have peace for a whole age now."

Legolas lifted Aragorn's chin and looked him in the eyes. "Yes, he was mad about Isildur's weakness. It could have ended there and then. He lost his father and we lost many warriors then to defeat Sauron only for it all to be for naught. But you're not Isildur. You can't be held responsible for what Isildur did a long time ago. Do you really think my father would hold your ancestry against you?"

Aragorn looked down again. "Probably not." He took a deep breath. "I don't know if I can do this."

"Leading the Dúnedain? Accepting your destiny?"

"Yes."

"You are still young. Do you think I was born a warrior and with the responsibilities I carry now? I grew into that, the same as you will do."

Aragorn stared at him for a moment. "I wish I had your optimism."

They continued their meal and the conversation turned to Imladris and its occupants. Even if Legolas hadn't seen Estel for six years, he found that they were quickly falling into an easy camaraderie.

TBC


	2. Orc Attack

As Thranduil had hoped, Aragorn indeed provided a distraction for Legolas, who finished his treatment and was declared free of the shadow by Celairdir. Although the healer advised that Legolas continued to drink tea made of athelas for a while longer. Unwilling to let Legolas go on patrol immediately, Thranduil subtly suggested that he wouldn't be opposed to the idea of Legolas accompanying Aragorn to Lothlorien.

Legolas had never been to Lothlorien before. He knew that his father didn't trust Galadriel, but Celeborn was a kinsman of them and he thought that it might be a good idea to visit there. So he accepted his father's suggestion and offered Aragorn to accompany him. That offer was gladly accepted.

It took a bit before they could set out because Legolas' work had to be handed over to Galdor and Thranduil. After two days they finally packed provisions and readied their horses. Thranduil came to the stables to see them off, so they could exchange their farewells in a more private setting than in the busy courtyard.

First he bid Aragorn farewell, then he turned to Legolas. "May your journey be uneventful and the Valar protect you. Please send a bird when you arrive in Lothlorien."

"Don't worry, Adar," Legolas assured him. "We will head for the Anduin and cross, so we will stay well away from Dol Guldur."

"I think that's a wise decision," Thranduil agreed. "The other side of the Anduin should be safer than this side."

Aragorn and Legolas mounted their horses and Legolas bid his father farewell, then they moved out.

Legolas looked forward to the journey. He was curious about Lothlorien and its inhabitants.

They set a leisurely pace, talking quietly and enjoying each other's company. In the evening they made their camp in a clearing.

While Aragorn gathered firewood, Legolas tended the horses. He unpacked their provisions and took them over to the stack of firewood. After Aragorn had lit the fire, Legolas put a pot of water over it.

He sat down next to his friend and handed him a packet wrapped in leaves, containing dried meat, fruits and waybread.

"Thank you." Aragorn unwrapped the packet and started to eat.

"Do you want tea?" Legolas asked.

"Yes, please."

Legolas put leaves into two cups and added the boiling water from the pot. He put one cup in front of Aragorn.

For a while they ate in silence.

"Where do you intend to travel after Lothlorien?" Legolas finally broke the silence.

"My father advised me to spend more time with humans, to get to know their ways. So I think I will travel on to Rohan afterwards."

"The land of the horselords," Legolas nodded. "I think that is a good idea." He drank the last sips of his tea and emptied the wet leaves onto the floor. "My people traded with them but that was a long time ago. When we lived further south." He took a few athelas-leaves, crushed them and put them into the cup, then he added hot water. "Before the shadow spread," he said pensively, staring into the cup.

Aragorn noticed his somber mood and tried to distract him. "Can you tell me about them?"

"I don't know much," Legolas started to tell his friend what he knew about the Rohirrim and their customs.

Aragorn listened attentively, having grown up in Imladris, his dealings with humans had been limited and he was eager to learn more about his people and to get to know them.

Since it was already late, they decided to retire for the night. Even if they were still in a safe part of the forest, they decided to set a watch. Legolas took the first watch, while Aragorn took the second. His watch passed uneventful and as the morning dawned he decided to wake Legolas so they could head out early.

Legolas leaned on a tree, eyes glazed in reverie. Aragorn stepped closer, bent down and touched his shoulder…

…only to find himself on his back, Legolas above him, with one of his knives at the ranger's throat. The elf had moved so fast that Aragorn didn't really know how it had happened.

Legolas' eyes cleared and widened. He lowered his knife and pulled back, standing up. "By the Valar, Aragorn, didn't your brothers warn you?"

Aragorn was too stunned to answer. Legolas stretched a hand out and after a slight hesitation he took it and let the elf pull him to his feet.

"Warned?" Aragorn questioned.

"Never touch me when I sleep. Stay a few feet away and say my name. My home is different from yours. We have Dol Guldur on our doorstep, we constantly battle orcs, wargs and spiders. So for us it is important to be battle ready at all times, even coming out of reverie. It is ingrained in me, a reflex. I thought your brothers told you when last I was in Imladris or at your visit six years ago. I thought you knew, since all of Imladris knows, otherwise I would have warned you."

Aragorn raised an eyebrow. "All of Imladris?"

"Much to the embarrassment of Glorfindel and my chagrin."

Aragorn grinned. "You didn't."

Legolas nodded. "I did. Fortunately it was in one of the gardens, so I was unarmed. I had fallen into reverie and he wanted to wake me for the evening meal. He found himself in the same situation as you, only with my hands around his throat. Unfortunately, since it was in the garden, we had witnesses. Luckily Glorfindel took it with good grace, even the ribbing that resulted of it."

Aragorn laughed. "I would have loved to see that."

Legolas grimaced. "I was really embarrassed, luckily it at least wasn't Lord Elrond, that would have been even worse."

That was a thought that made the ranger laugh even more.

Legolas huffed. "I didn't find it funny at that time."

"I can imagine," Aragorn tried to get himself under control.

Finally Aragorn calmed down and prepared breakfast while Legolas cared for the horses and made everything ready so that they could leave after they had eaten.

Finally they were off and the site was silent once again.

* * *

Aragorn and Legolas traveled at a leisurely pace. As they reached the forest gate they turned towards the river. They reached the shore in the evening and decided to cross it the next day, when there was more light. So they rode south along the Anduin for a while before they decided to make camp for the night.

Legolas cared for the horses while Aragorn was preparing something to eat. The elf had shot two rabbits earlier, so there was more than enough for the both of them. He prepared the rabbits and put them on sticks above the fire. While they waited for their food to be ready they talked quietly. After their meal they set the watches, Legolas taking the first one, and Aragorn lay down to sleep.

Legolas settled down for the watch, all senses on alert. Except from the murmuring of the river and the occasional night bird he didn't hear or notice anything amiss. As his watch was over, he woke Aragorn and lay down on his bedroll to get some sleep.

A slight trembling beneath him woke him. The sun was in the process of rising but the day was foggy with rising mist and so it was still relatively dark. He sat up and looked to Aragorn who threw him a questioning look.

"The ground trembles slightly," he explained. "Both Aragorn and Legolas bent down and listened at the ground. Suddenly Legolas jerked up, reaching for his bow and stringing it. "Orcs," he exclaimed, "from the sound of it a lot of them. They approach from the south and it seems they're headed in this direction."

"What are they doing here?"

"Let's discuss their motives later." Legolas mentally checked their options. From what he had heard there were too many orcs for the two of them to take them on. He whistled for the horses and Baranon came immediately. Aragorn called his horse and his stallion went over to him. "We have to leave immediately," Legolas urged. "There are too many orcs, we can't fight them all."

They both mounted their horses and turned them away from the approaching group. They had barely ridden a few hundred meters when Legolas stopped Baranon with a dismayed groan. Another group was nearing them, this one from the direction of the forest. Obviously this group had already spotted them, because they increased their speed.

Legolas cursed. They had no other option, they needed to battle this group and try to evade the other one by heading straight for the forest, in the hope that they would meet a border patrol soon. If they tried to flee in another direction, the possibility that both groups joined and chased them was great.

He turned to Aragorn. "We don't have a choice, we have to fight the smaller group and make our way towards the wood. If we try to go north we could run into more of them and we won't find help there."

Aragorn nodded grimly and readied his bow. They both waited tensely until the orcs were near enough, at least for elven eyes, then Legolas loosed one arrow after the other, quickly killing a lot of the orcs.

Finally Aragorn was able to join in and he managed to kill a few orcs before the group was upon them. They dismounted from their horses and sent the animals away, not wanting them to fall victim to the orcs and intending to use them for their later escape.

Legolas soon wreaked havoc amount the orcs and noticed that Aragorn was a very capable fighter by now. Together they managed to reduce the attacking group greatly in numbers but the other group drew constantly closer.

While Legolas fought two orcs and gutted one of them, Aragorn was fighting another one at the edge of the river bank. Here the shore had risen and formed a cliff. The battle between him and the orc was fierce and they moved forward and backward. During the fight Aragorn had slowly been driven back towards the edge of the cliff. Suddenly there was a cracking noise and part of the edge gave way, causing the ranger to lose his footing and tumble down the cliff.

Legolas could only watch stunned as the ranger disappeared from sight. Locked in battle with another two orcs, he slowly retreated to the edge off the cliff, killing both orcs and the one Aragorn had been fighting against before searching for a way down before the next orcs were at him. He swiftly made his way down the wall, like only an elf was able to do. Reaching the ground, he found Aragorn unconscious, sword still clasped in his hand. Gently, Legolas removed it, cleaned and sheathed it, before he hurriedly began to examine Aragorn. To his relief he didn't seem to have injured his spine.

Arrows from above reminded him that they hadn't gotten rid of the orcs. He considered his options, few as they were. There were not so many orcs left but the other group was now upon them and brought reinforcements, especially archers. He didn't have a chance to get the horses. The orcs would come down the cliff sooner or later or the archers would pick them off. There was only one option left to him, even if he didn't like it.

Trying to not give the orc archers a clear shot, he slowly dragged Aragorn to the water. Then he gripped him firmly, went into the water himself and let the current carry them downstream. The orcs shot arrows after them but they were quickly out of reach. He also knew that the orcs wouldn't be quick enough to follow, so he hoped they would give up.

It wasn't easy to maneuver in the water with an unconscious ranger as dead weight but he managed to stay near to the shore. The river carried them for quite some time until he managed to swim to the shoreline and get them out of the water again. He hoisted Aragorn up and carried him a short way from the river bank, where he laid him down.

Legolas straightened and caught his breath for a moment. Then he began to examine his surroundings. Looking around he saw a few trees nearby. He thanked the Valar for their luck because where there were trees there certainly was dead wood for a fire. Aragorn needed to get dry and warm quickly or matters would get even worse.

Legolas made his friend as comfortable as possible for the moment then he went to gather dry wood and built a fire. He didn't like to light a fire but he had no other choice, so he dug a pit to hide the light of the fire as much as possible. He feared to draw the orcs' attention again and hoped they were far enough away to not see the bit of light that escaped from the fire pit.

He dragged the ranger over to the fire and removed Aragorn's wet tunic. Since he had no clothes to change him into, he just laid him down as near to the fire as he could, in the hope that his clothes would dry soon and the fire would warm him up.

Legolas ignored his own dripping state and knelt down next to Aragorn, examining him gently. He discovered a wound on the back of his head where he obviously had collided with some rocks, maybe during his fall. If he had hit his head upon impact, he surely would be dead by now. The swelling was impressive but luckily it didn't feel as if the bone was broken. He guessed that the ranger had suffered a severe concussion thus explaining his still unconscious state. His left arm was broken and Legolas set the bones then he cut strips from his tunic and chose a branch which he used to stabilize the break. He tied the strips around the arm and the stick, then he moved on to check for other injuries. He felt two cracked ribs and bound Aragorn's ribcage too. Finally he had done everything he could with the meager supplies he had.

After he was finished tending to the ranger Legolas went in search of more branches. He needed to construct a litter, since Aragorn wouldn't be able to walk. He just hoped that the orcs wouldn't pursue them but he seriously doubted it. One elf and one human wouldn't be too much of a lure.

He cut his cloak further into strips and used them and the branches to built the litter. He made good progress and stopped his work only shortly to check on Aragorn. The ranger's condition hadn't changed. He was still unconscious although his clothes were slowly drying. Legolas rubbed his brow wearily then he continued on his work. After he was satisfied that his construction was stable enough and would hold the ranger he considered his next course of action. He couldn't head back north, in case the orcs still lingered. He also couldn't head east, directly into the forest and try to make it to an elvish outpost on the outskirts of the wood because the chance was great that they would encounter more orcs on their way. He also didn't have a waterskin so he had to stay close to the river, their only water source. So the only option left was to keep to their original plan and head for Lothlorien, further in the south. He only hoped he would encounter elves from there on this side of the river or at least find a boat he could use.

Deciding to head out in the morning, he sat down near the fire, senses on alert for any unusual noise. It would be a long night.

TBC


	3. Pursuit

_A dark mist whirled, slowly lightening and revealing images. He could see a battle field, dead orcs littering the floor. The image slowly changed and showed a lone figure, wandering in the wilds and pulling something behind him. Slowly the figure came nearer and more details revealed themselves. The figure seemed to be an elf which pulled a litter and on the litter was another figure. The image changed again so the surroundings could be seen. The elf headed for a hill. Slowly the view changed again, showing more of the surroundings. A big river was running on one side of the travelers while a forest loomed in some distance on the other side. The view drew closer to the lone elf and the litter again and the faces of the elf and the person on the litter were revealed. The view changed again and a large group of orcs could be seen, obviously chasing the two travelers._

Elrond awoke with a gasp. He shot up in bed and gripped his head. The images had been so vivid that he had no doubt that he had experienced a bout of foresight. He had seen Legolas, while Aragorn was lying on the litter that Legolas pulled. If it was real and they were charged by that large group of orcs they would stand no chance against them. Legolas alone couldn't fight that many orcs.

He stood and pulled a robe over his nightclothes. Then he headed straight for Glorfindel's door. He gave a sharp knock and waited impatiently. It was in the middle of the night and his seneschal must have been asleep.

After a moment the door opened, revealing Glorfindel, similar dressed in a robe over his nightclothes. His hair was mussed and he looked at Elrond curiously, stepping aside to let him enter the room.

Elrond only got in a few steps before he spoke. "I had a bout of foresight. I want to head out early on the morrow with twenty warriors."

"What did you see?" Glorfindel asked. It was seldom that he had seen Elrond so shaken and so determined at the same moment.

"Estel and Legolas are in trouble. I hope we will be in time."

"Come, sit and tell me what you saw," Glorfindel invited.

Elrond was tense and impatient but he knew that they couldn't just leave in the middle of the night without preparations. So he sat down and told Glorfindel what he had seen.

"Hmm," Glorfindel looked thoughtful. "Are you sure that this lies in the future?"

"Absolutely," Elrond was absolutely convinced that it had a meaning that he had seen these vision.

"Even if we ride hard, it will take at least ten days for us to reach the Anduin," Glorfindel mused. "I hope we will be in time. Did you consider sending a bird to warn Thranduil?"

"A bird will take a few days. We can send one but I want to head out in the morning. They can already have left or the bird will not arrive, what then?"

"I'll make sure that everything is ready," Glorfindel assured.

"Thank you. Since Elladan and Elrohir are with the rangers, Erestor will have to take over. I'll inform him of our departure." Elrond inclined his head at Glorfindel then he headed to Erestor's quarters to tell him that he would have to take over the running of Imladris for a while.

* * *

At dawn the courtyard was full of warriors mounting their horses. Each of them carried a bow and quiver in addition to the usually used swords. They would need to take the orcs out from afar given the number Elrond had seen in his vision. Taking a larger group was no option, it would only slow them down since they would have to hunt to get everybody fed or take pack horses which would also slow them down.

Elrond and Glorfindel mounted their horses and shortly after that the group galloped out of Imladris in the direction of the high pass.

Elrond just hoped that the warning had come in time and they wouldn't be too late.

* * *

As soon as the sun had risen above the horizon, Legolas made ready to head out. Aragorn had warmed up over night, his clothing was now dry and he was wrapped in his own cloak and what was left of Legolas'. The elf carefully rolled his friend onto the litter. Before they could start he needed to leave the ranger alone for a moment. Since their water skins were gone, along with the rest of their packs, he needed to get the ranger to drink now. He moved to the shore of the river, wetted a cloth in the water and returned to Aragorn. Gently lifting the head of the ranger and supporting him with one hand, he trickled water into his mouth with the other. He worried about the fact that Aragorn hadn't woken yet but that was something he couldn't change, so he decided to concentrate on the way ahead.

He picked up the handles of the litter and started south at a moderate pace. It would be a long trek and he needed to conserve his strength. Aragorn remained motionless and didn't give any signs of waking, much to Legolas' worry. The elf knew that it was a bad sign if the ranger stayed unconscious for much longer.

In the afternoon he finally heard a low moan coming from his friend. He stopped, lowered the litter and leaned over Aragorn. "Estel, can you hear me?"

Another moan came and Aragorn's eyelids fluttered slightly. After a moment they slowly lifted, only for the human to slam them back shut with a groan.

"Easy," Legolas said quietly, "you took a bad fall and you have a head injury. I can imagine that you have a headache."

"A bad one," Aragorn murmured, blinking and then squeezing his eyes shut again with a moan.

Legolas sighed. "Unfortunately I can't give you anything for that. We lost our packs so I don't have medicine."

The ranger nodded with gritted teeth then his eyes closed and he relaxed into unconsciousness once more.

Legolas touched his brow with a worried frown, checking for fever but finding Aragorn's temperature normal. He sighed. There was nothing much he could do for his friend except trying to get him to help as fast as possible. He stretched for a moment, trying to ease his cramped muscles. As he did so, he glanced in the direction from which they had come and suddenly he froze.

Far in the distance, nearly even out of _his_ eyesight, he could make out movement. He concentrated and tried to see more details and he felt dread slam into him. It looked as if a group of orcs was either following them or at least moving in their direction by coincidence. He didn't understand it. Normally orcs didn't move by daylight and even if it was cloudy, the sun was in the sky and would make traveling for the orcs uncomfortable.

Deciding not to think about it much longer but instead putting as much distance as possible between them and the orcs he picked up Aragorn's litter once more and marched on. From time to time he checked the progress of the orcs and found to his dismay that they hadn't fallen behind much. The only choice he had was to keep going and hoping that they were _not_ following them.

He continued on until night was falling and it got dark. Allowing himself a short break he went to the river to drink something and to wet a cloth so that he could dribble water into Aragorn's mouth again.

He continued on through he night, allowing himself only short breaks. In the morning he couldn't see anything of pursuers. Aragorn moaned and moved his head so Legolas put the litter down and knelt next to it, watching the ranger for signs of awakening.

After a moment the ranger moaned again and lifted his right hand to his head. Legolas caught it and prevented Aragorn from touching his head. The ranger's head turned slightly in his direction but he kept his eyes firmly shut. "Legolas?" he whispered.

"I'm here," the elf assured him.

"What happened?" the ranger inquired.

Legolas frowned but he knew that people with a concussion could forget things so he tried not to get too worried. "We ran into a group of orcs and you took a bad fall," he explained.

"That's why my head hurts so bad?" Aragorn murmured.

"Yes," Legolas confirmed.

The ranger drew a deep breath and opened his eyes a bit. He squinted up at Legolas. "You alright?" he asked.

"Yes," Legolas reassured him, a bit surprised that even in his condition Aragorn thought to check on Legolas' wellbeing.

The ranger turned his head and groaned. "Why are you pulling me, where are the horses?" he whispered.

"We lost them at the cliff," Legolas explained. "You fell down in the fight with the orcs and I had to follow you."

"You look worried," the ranger observed.

"It is still some distance until we reach somewhere where I can get help for you," Legolas explained. He didn't think that mentioning the orcs would be wise.

Aragorn nodded in understanding. It looked as if he wanted to say something more but he slipped once more into unconsciousness and his drawn features relaxed slightly.

Legolas sighed. He had hoped that his friend would show some improvement but he wasn't much better. Well at least he wasn't worse either, since swelling of the brain had been of some concern to Legolas. As he touched Aragorn's brow he felt to his dismay that the ranger had a slight fever. That was something they certainly didn't need. He went to the river and wet a cloth which he then placed on Aragorn's forehead. He decided to let the human rest for a while without being jostled and settled down next to the litter. From time to time he checked his friend's fever and went to the river to rewet the cloth. Luckily the fever hadn't risen yet.

From time to time he checked the direction in which he knew the orcs to be. Finally he spotted something and groaned. He could make out movement. It looked as if their bad luck would keep on. Worse, it seemed as if the orcs were really following them. He didn't understand it. Why would such a large group bother with an elf and a human? Did some orc recognize him? That would be an explanation why they were so persistent. Capturing Thranduil's son would be a big achievement. But the orcs shouldn't even know that he existed, they certainly didn't know how he looked. He shook his head. It was a moot point to think about it now. They were obviously pursued, that was the fact he should concentrate on. He was certain that the orcs couldn't see them so it seemed that they had found their tracks and were following them.

He once again picked up the litter. Their time for rest was over. He needed to get moving again and try to shake their pursuers off. Having to drag the litter behind was slowing him down considerably, giving the orcs the chance to catch up to them. Sighing, Legolas began to move, he hoped that they would reach safety before the orcs reached them.

* * *

The petitions for the day slowly came to an end, much to Thranduil's relief. The last case for today were two neighbors who had a dispute over the fruits of some trees on the border of their dwellings. After Thranduil had spoken justice to both elves' satisfaction they thanked him and turned to leave the throne room. The other assembled elves also turned to go, small groups talking quietly when Angon strode into the throne room and headed straight for Thranduil.

The captain of the royal guard wore an anxious expression and Thranduil straightened in his throne, suddenly certain that whatever news Angon had, he wouldn't like it.

Angon stepped closer and came to a stop in front of the king. "What is it? Thranduil asked.

Angon looked around, noting that except for the guards no elf was near enough to eavesdrop. He bent forward lightly and lowered his voice so the guards wouldn't hear. "The northern patrol sent word. Baranon and Estel's horse have showed up at the forest gate. They found no sign of Legolas or Estel."

Thranduil felt the fear rising in him. "Did they search for tracks?"

"They are searching at the moment. The horses weren't injured and there was no sign of a struggle. The horses were carrying their packs so it looks as if they were sent away."

Thranduil took a deep breath. "In other words we don't have the slightest idea where Legolas and Estel are or what has happened to them."

"Yes," Angon confirmed, the dismay clear in his voice.

"Alert the warriors. I want a group to set out immediately to search for them."

"As you wish. We will find them." Angon left the throne room and headed for the warrior quarters to assemble a group.

"I just hope they'll be well," Thranduil murmured before he turned towards the royal quarters.

* * *

Word had spread quickly among the warriors that their prince was missing and it didn't take long for a group to assemble and ready for departure. Angon would lead them while Galdor, who was eager to search for his friend, had been ordered to stay at the stronghold. With Legolas and Angon gone somebody had to be in charge of the warriors and so, much to his dismay, Galdor had to stay behind.

While the warriors readied for departure Angon went to the royal quarters to report to Thranduil that they were ready. As he entered the corridor to the royal quarters he saw Thranduil coming towards him. The king was fully armed and dressed for travel, carrying a pack with him.

Angon gave his friend a disapproving look. "What are you doing?"

Thranduil didn't even slow down, forcing Angon to fall in step beside him. "My son and Estel are missing, do you think I will sit by idly and do nothing while you go out and search for them? Feron and Dilloth will take care of everything until we're back."

Angon sighed inwardly. He had expected this. He wanted to protest but the determined look in Thranduil's eyes convinced him that he could spare his breath. The king wouldn't listen to his arguments. He would not stay in the stronghold and let others search for his missing son and his companion. He knew that after the losses he had faced, his father, his mother and finally his wife, Thranduil wasn't able to bear more, the king would search the whole of Arda for Legolas if he had to. So the captain only shrugged his shoulders and accompanied Thranduil on his way to the doors.

As they entered the courtyard, about fifty elves were milling about, readying themselves for departure.

Thranduil turned to his friend and raised an eyebrow. "You don't take any chances, do you?"

Angon just shrugged. "I suspected you would come. I'll not risk my king."

Stable hands brought their horses and while they mounted, another elf joined them, armed and carrying a satchel.

"Celairdir," the king greeted, "what are you doing here?"

The healer motioned for a groom to bring his horse. "I'll be coming with you in case I'm needed." He held Thranduil's gaze steadily, silently conveying that there was a high probability that Legolas and Aragorn were injured if not worse.

Thranduil only nodded, not being able to talk at the moment. The fear for his son and the human sat like a stone in his stomach. He let his gaze roam over the yard, noticing that nearly everybody was ready for departure.

Celairdir fastened the satchel around his horse and mounted, turning his steed around to join the others who were waiting to depart.

Thranduil turned his own horse, moving in front of the group. He raised his hand and on his silent signal, they were off.

* * *

For Thranduil the next days were pure agony as they made their way to the forest gate. For him they moved much too slow but he couldn't change it. The horses and the warriors needed to rest. It would do no good if they were exhausted when a fight was more than likely. He often volunteered for one of the watches since he couldn't find rest anyway. The worry for Legolas sat in his stomach like a heavy piece of ore.

Celairdir and Angon tried to get him to rest without much success.

"I don't want you to take a watch tonight," Angon told Thranduil in the evening as they sat at the fire. "You need to get some rest. It won't do Legolas or you any good if we find him and you're completely exhausted."

"I'll find no rest," Thranduil stated, staring into the fire.

Celairdir sat down beside him, handing him a cup of tea. "You must at least try," he admonished gently. "Angon is right, you need to rest."

Thranduil sniffed the tea suspiciously.

"It contains only calming herbs," Celairdir assured him.

The king took a sip and slowly drained the cup. The three elves were silent for a while, each following his own thoughts and worries.

Finally, Angon clapped Thranduil on the shoulder. "Come, lay down and try to get some sleep."

Thranduil had refused the comfort and privacy of a tent. He simply slept on the ground, like all other elves. So he unrolled his bedroll and lay down on it, silently observed from Angon and Celairdir. Celairdir nodded to Angon, silently confirming that he would keep an eye on the king while Angon went to take his watch.

In the morning as Angon rose, Thranduil was already up and Angon exchanged a dismayed look with Celairdir, both of them rolling their eyes.

TBC


	4. Desperate Thoughts

Thanks to everybody who reviewed and liked the story. It's greatly appreciated.

* * *

As the troop reached the forest gate they quickly conversed with the elves there. They had tracked the horses' path back to a place where dead orcs lay around. It was clear that a fight had taken place but they couldn't determine if Aragorn and Legolas had been captured. The tracks of the orcs led south so they turned in that direction and headed out. Angon advised Thranduil to follow the tracks of the orcs so they could check if any tracks were leading off, towards Dol Guldur or into another direction, and maybe they would find hints of Aragorn and Legolas. So they followed the tracks of the orcs and searched left and right of the tracks for any indication that a group had veered off. It was a slower process than Thranduil would have liked but they had to be sure that no group hat left and maybe taken Aragorn and Legolas with them.

After one day of traveling and searching, one of the elves came back to the main group at a fast pace. He stopped in front of Thranduil. "Sire, we have spotted a group of riders that has just crossed the river."

"Do you know who they are?" Thranduil asked calmly.

We couldn't see details but it looked like elven horses, so I suspect they are elves."

The king, Angon and Celairdir exchanged a glance. That were surprising news and they were curious who it could be. Aside from the elves of Mirkwood other elves didn't travel normally in that region. "We will see soon enough," Thranduil said. "Although it seems too big a coincidence that we meet a troop of other elves in the wilds."

Celairdir nodded thoughtfully. "That's odd indeed," he agreed.

They turned in the direction where the riders had been spotted. At least they could see them. As they neared, Thranduil could make out the one in the lead and gasped in surprise. It was Elrond himself and next to him rode Glorfindel.

The other elves had spotted them and headed in their direction. After a few minutes they came to a halt in front of Thranduil's party.

"Elrond, Glorfindel," Thranduil greeted, dismounting. "What in the name of the Valar are you doing here?"

Elrond and Glorfindel also dismounted and the three greeted each other with a warrior's grip and a few warm words.

"I had a flash of foresight," Elrond explained finally. "Estel and Legolas are in trouble."

"Yes, we know," Thranduil admitted. "Their horses came back to the forest gate where a patrol found them. They obviously met a group of orcs but we don't know if they have been captured."

Elrond looked alarmed. So his vision proved to be true. Deep inside he still had hoped that maybe this time events shown to him by his foresight wouldn't come to pass and his worry would be for naught. Now that hope was dashed. He drew his hands over his face wearily. "In the flash of foresight I had, they were free but Estel was seriously injured and the orcs were after them."

Thranduil looked grim. His own worst fears were being confirmed. He wanted so badly to chase after the tracks with all available speed but instead they were moving way too slow for his liking because of the tracking they had to do. His patience was wearing thin. "Let us hurry then to be on our way. We are searching for tracks leading from the main group to make sure if they have been captured that they haven't been taken somewhere else."

They remounted and then set off, Thranduil, Elrond and Glorfindel in the lead.

Thranduil steered his stallion closer to Elrond. "What did you see?" he asked quietly.

"First I saw a battlefield, littered with dead orcs. Then I saw Legolas pulling Estel on a litter, obviously chased by a large group of orcs." Elrond told Thranduil the details from his vision, also describing the surrounding landscape he had seen.

Thranduil closed his eyes. He knew that they couldn't be absolutely certain that what Elrond had seen would really come to pass but it didn't sound good at all. He hoped they would find the missing duo in time.

* * *

In the evening the rescue party made camp. They hoped that the next day they would catch up to the two missing friends and the orcs.

Thranduil sat next to Elrond and Glorfindel, nervously twirling a spoon in his hand. A bowl of stew sat uneaten in front of him. He was deep in thought, his imagination coming up with the worst scenarios that could happen to Estel and his son at that moment.

After a while Elrond couldn't stand it anymore, reached over and put his hand on Thranduil's, stilling the nervous movement. "You should eat your stew," he advised.

The king sighed. "I'm not hungry."

Glorfindel picked the bowl up and pushed it into Thranduil's hands. "Even if you're not hungry, you have to keep up your strength. Legolas will need you soon enough."

Thranduil tried hard to not let it show how terrified he was for Legolas. He could only remember too well the time Legolas had been captured and tortured by orcs on his way to Imladris. He would never forget the sight that greeted him as he first laid eyes on his son after his arrival in Imladris. It had taken Legolas a long time to recover and he had suffered nightmares and flashbacks.

He sighed and started to eat reluctantly. "I fear what we might find," he admitted quietly. "Since we got the news that Baranon and Estel's horse turned up at the forest gate I fear for them. It drives me mad that we can't go faster." He looked at Elrond. "You know what happened the last time he was captured by orcs. And they didn't even have him that long. Now they are both missing for days." He stared into his bowl for a moment. "A lot can happen within a few days."

Elrond sighed. He, too, was worried and anxious. He just hoped that both, Legolas and Aragorn, were still free. Although he worried for his foster-son, not knowing if he had been injured like he had seen in his vision and how serious this injury was. So he nodded understandingly. "I fear for them too," he agreed. "I know that Estel has to be hurt if my vision is correct. It seems to be serious if Legolas has to pull him on a litter. I only hope that we'll be in time and that at least Legolas will be alright."

Thranduil met Elrond's anxious gaze. "I'm sorry," he said. "If it's hard for me how must you feel, knowing that most certainly Estel is seriously injured."

Elrond looked down at his hands, swallowing heavily. He tried to keep up a calm façade but he couldn't hide the worry he felt. "We also don't know if and when the events I saw happened. Maybe your fears will prove true and they have fallen in the hands of the orcs by now. We know what these beasts would do to them."

Glorfindel tried to reassure the two concerned elves. "I'm sure we'll find them in time. We should be close now."

Thranduil nodded. "I hope so," he whispered, exchanging a look with Elrond.

Celairdir approached them. "You made him eat something, that's good." He ignored Thranduil's annoyed look and sat down beside him. "The last days he not only didn't rest properly but he did barely eat anything. We had to force him to take some rest."

"Elrond was the same," Glorfindel chimed in, following Celairdir's example and ignoring Elrond's annoyed look. He wisely didn't add that he also had barely slept, sharing Elrond's anxiety and hoping that the healer's vision wouldn't prove correct and that Estel wasn't badly hurt.

Celairdir sighed. They all shared the anxiety and worry and the delays they had to endure during the rest stops were hard on everyone. They tried to distract themselves but often conversation would stop as each of them followed his own thoughts and battled the fear for the missing duo.

"Legolas told us that Estel came as a young child to Imladris, after his father had been killed. So how was he as a child?" he asked, trying to distract all of them.

Elrond and Glorfindel exchanged a glance, smiling.

"Oh, he was quite a handful," Elrond started.

For the next hour Elrond and Glorfindel told them about Estel's childhood, distracting them all from their fears for a while.

* * *

Legolas stumbled on the uneven ground, lacking his usual graceful movements, and cursed silently. He looked back to make sure that he hadn't jostled the stretcher with Aragorn and stopped for a moment. The last four days had been a nightmare. First Aragorn's fever had stayed low and he had hoped that it would vanish. The ranger had even come to a few times and was lucid, although his head still hurt terribly. But suddenly the fever had spiked and the ranger had been haunted with fevered dreams. Legolas had to stop several times to get water from the river to cool him down and to try to lower the fever. The situation was made worse by the orcs still pursuing them and slowly gaining on them. They must be worn out but still they followed with a determination and at a speed that Legolas found astonishing and disconcerting. These orcs behaved totally different than what he was used to. They had steadily gained on them and now they were coming dangerously close. Legolas was weary. Adding to that he hadn't eaten for days since their provisions had been with the horses and he couldn't afford to stop and hunt or gather berries. That and the constant worry about Aragorn and the orcs was bad enough but the fact that he had to stay alert in case his friend's condition worsened meant that he couldn't walk in elven dreams while traveling and slowly the strain was taking its toll. Even elven endurance had its limits.

He had to admit to himself that they wouldn't make it to Lorien. The orcs had gained terrain too fast. So all he could do was search for a place which offered some shelter and make a last stand. He looked down at his friend, who lay still at the moment, for the time being not tossing around in his dreams. He had hoped to save the human and felt deep regret that it seemed that he wouldn't succeed.

He knelt down next to Aragorn, feeling the forehead of the ranger and checking the fever again. For a moment he allowed himself to rest, thinking once more about his options. He shuddered as he remembered his experience in the hands of the orcs a few years back. The beasts had tortured him in abhorrent ways and it had taken him some time to overcome this. Now it looked as if this incident would be repeated even if he did everything in his power to avoid that. Worse, they would get their filthy claws on Aragorn, too. He knew that they would take great pleasure in torturing or mutilating the ranger before his eyes before they would turn their attention to him.

He swallowed, trying to keep the desperation at bay that had risen within him during the last few days. It was hard to accept that he wasn't able to shake the orcs off. He considered to take to the river again, but he wouldn't be able to maneuver with Aragorn on the litter. Leaving it was not an option, since he didn't have any supplies to construct a new one. Besides, the cold water would surely be Aragorn's death. Well, it was too late for that now anyhow, the orcs were too close.

With a deep sigh, he straightened and took the litter once more, trudging forward, searching their surroundings for anything that offered shelter. Since he could detect nothing, he made his way further towards a hill in the distance in the hope that there he would have luck and find a suitable cave or anything that even resembled shelter.

He knew that time was running out for them. The orcs were catching up more and more and if he didn't find shelter soon, he had to fight them on the open plane. He knew that he would have no chance then, there were too many orcs for one elf to defeat them. Even if they reached shelter, his chances to survive the encounter were very slim.

His desperation grew. He moved faster, trying to evade the orcs as long as possible. Finally they came to the hill and Legolas scanned his surroundings, searching for any kind of shelter. He was lucky then, he spotted a few cave mouths and headed in this direction. Since it was going uphill, he couldn't pull Aragorn's litter further without slowing down considerably and risking the human to slide off, so he lifted the ranger over his shoulder and carried him. Aragorn didn't move at the jostling and Legolas' concern grew. Their situation was truly desperate. Aragorn needed medicine and treatment and Legolas could offer him none of that.

Finally he had at least some luck. He spotted a cave with a very narrow entrance, just enough to let one person pass and headed in that direction. The cave was bigger than he had anticipated, leading into a second cave. Legolas looked around and spotted a few boulders near to the cave wall. It seemed like a good spot to hide Aragorn. He laid his friend carefully down, placing him on his cloak and putting the remains of his own cloak beneath Aragorn's head. He hoped that maybe Aragorn wouldn't be found by the orcs if he fell. Although nobody knew where he was so it was a high possibility that the ranger would die too, since it would be a wonder if he would be found in time by anyone searching for them. But at least maybe he would die in peace and not be tortured to death by the approaching orcs.

After he had his friend settled as comfortable as possible he prepared for the coming attack, gathering all the arrows they had left and preparing himself mentally.

* * *

In the morning the elves were up and following the tracks as soon as there was light. All elves knew how grim the situation was and so the warriors hurried to clean up the camp and be ready to be on the move again.

There were still warriors riding at the sides of the tracks, making sure that nobody had left the main group and trying to find other tracks. Suddenly one of them called, "Over here, my Lords."

Thranduil, Elrond, Glorfindel and Angon rode in his direction and dismounted a short distance away. As they came over he pointed to the floor. They saw two lines a short distance apart and between them the barely visible footprints of an elf. They were certain that it were the tracks of the missing pair. The footsteps were from Legolas and the indentions were caused by the stretcher he was pulling behind. They were overlaid mostly by the tracks of the orcs, it was pure luck that the warrior had spotted them.

"Well done," Angon praised him. "So they are still heading all in the same direction," he stated with a worried frown.

Thranduil and Elrond exchanged dismayed glances. The tracks looked to be made at the same time. Legolas was seriously slowed down by pulling Aragorn and it looked as if the orcs had caught up to them or were nearly upon them. Obviously Legolas had tried to outrun the orcs but they didn't know if he had succeeded or if he and Aragorn had already been captured.

His face grim, Thranduil remounted, hoping that they weren't too late. The tracks were fairly fresh, they were closing in rapidly now.

They followed the tracks for a while longer and Elrond studied the landscape, trying to detect anything that seemed familiar from his vision. Finally a hill emerged in front of them and Elrond recognized it. He pointed at it and addressed Thranduil. "That was where I saw them in my vision."

Thranduil clenched his jaw and turned towards the warriors. "Ready for battle. It seems that we will reach them soon."

The troop continued on hurriedly, trying to close the distance to their quarry as soon as possible. 

TBC


	5. Battle

Legolas had not even half an hour to prepare for the onslaught when the orcs finally caught up.

He watched the horde approach. It were approximately eighty orcs. He had known that his chances were slim but with such a large group against him he knew that it was a last stand. He could only hope to take as many with him as he could.

First Legolas shot them from afar, spending his and Aragorn's arrows. Even as each shot was true, there were more than enough orcs left that were so intent on killing the elf that they weren't intimidated by his skill with the bow. Luckily the orcs didn't have many archers and those they had were poor shots. Their arrows missed the elf completely and were a welcome addition to his supply. But even those were spent eventually and Legolas prepared himself for hand to hand combat.

The orcs approached the cave entrance and he drew his knives, ready for his last, desperate stand. There were at least fifty orcs left, he knew that he couldn't manage to stand against them all. Their situation had turned from worse to worst.

One orc shouted something in black speech and the group came to a stop although he could see that most of them could barely restrain themselves.

The orc that had spoken stepped forward a step. It was an especially ugly looking exemplar with a big scar down his face and parts of his ear missing.

"Come out, elf," he called, "and we will grant you a fast death."

Legolas snorted. They didn't actually think he would believe anything that they said?

"Come here and _I_ will grant _you_ a quick death," he countered.

The orc spat at the ground. "Why do an elf and a human travel together?" he asked.

Legolas was surprised. Obviously this one was smarter than the orcs he was normally used to. That they had noticed that Aragorn was human was astonishing. Indeed it was uncommon for elves to travel with mortals. So maybe that had woken their curiosity and was the reason for the pursuit. He took a deep breath, his worst fears seemed to have been averted, they didn't know that he was Thranduil's son.

"That's none of you business," he called back. "And even if I would tell you, you wouldn't be clever enough to understand," he continued, knowing full well that insulting the orc would most certainly lure them into an attack. Since a battle was unavoidable, he preferred that they didn't have time to study him too closely and maybe draw conclusions he wouldn't like.

The orc grunted, his visage turning into a mask of hatred, then he charged.

Legolas was ready for him, awaiting him with raised knives. The orc was livid and that was his undoing. He swung at Legolas with his axe but the elf easily avoided the blow, ducked beneath the orc's arm and drove one of his knives into the beast's belly. He twisted the knife and pulled it along the orc's stomach, scowling in disgust as the orc's entails spilled out. With a choked cry the orc fell to the ground and died.

The other orcs had witnessed their leader's death and for a short moment there was silence while they stared at the elf. But this didn't last long as they recovered from their shock and surprise. With bloodcurdling yells they attacked.

The next orc reached him and Legolas blocked a blow with a scimitar with one knife while he pushed the other one into the throat of the beast. Black blood spurted from the wound and the orc gurgled and fell to the ground, next to his leader.

That was the start of an all out attack. As soon as one orc fell, another took its place, eager for the elf's blood. Legolas did his best to fight them off but there seemed to be a never ending amount of orcs that took the place of their fallen comrades. His world narrowed down to defending, searching for an opening and slashing his attackers. On and on they came, never giving the elf the chance to rest even for a moment. The fight seemed to last for hours and he was tiring, knowing that it would lead him to make mistakes that could cost him his life.

Legolas had already sustained a few cuts and as he killed the orc before him and the beast was falling, another orc managed to get at him from the side and deal him a bad hit to the shoulder. Legolas sprang back with a curse, facing the new enemy, knowing that it wouldn't be long now until he would succumb to the sheer number of opponents.

* * *

The elves hurried on, certain that they would reach the orcs, Legolas and Aragorn soon now when suddenly the sound of fighting reached them. Thranduil, Elrond, Glorfindel and Angon exchanged a look, then they spurred their horses on, expecting the worst. The elven horses fairly flew over the ground, reaching the scene of the conflict in no time at all.

What they saw made their blood run cold. Legolas had sought shelter in a cave, the entrance small enough to allow passage only to one or two persons. He stood his ground against a massive group of orcs, who were all trying to get at him. As soon as one orc fell, another took its place. Legolas was desperately outnumbered and his clothes were already bloodstained. The ground was littered with dead orcs, silent proof that the fight already went on for some time. They couldn't see Aragorn, presumably Legolas had put him in the cave before the orcs were on him.

Thranduil didn't hesitate for a moment. While the first orcs fell to elven arrows, he charged ahead to confront the beasts nearest to his son. Elrond was close behind him, his worry for Aragorn fueling his fury. The two elf lords reined their steeds in and dismounted, already drawing their weapons before they even hit the ground.

They were met with totally surprised orcs, who faltered for a moment, making it easy for the elves to dispatch some of them. Both elf lords were formidable fighters and wreaked havoc amidst the orcs. The beasts were still stunned and it took a moment for them to finally start to fight in earnest, but by this time the rest of the elves had joined the fight. Against that number of elves the orcs stood no chance. It didn't take long for them to lay dead on the ground. The few that attempted to flee were felled by elven arrows, leaving none of them alive.

Legolas first didn't seem to get what was going on, still standing with his weapons raised in a guard position. Finally he lowered his knives, sagging exhaustedly against the rock of the cave. Slowly, he slid down the wall.

Thranduil dispatched his current opponent, then he looked around, making sure that there were no orcs nearby any more. Then he sheathed his sword and made his way directly towards his son, kneeling down in front of him, putting his hands on his shoulders.

Legolas looked up, a look of disbelief on his face. "Adar," he muttered, utterly exhausted. "How did you find us?"

Thranduil drew him into a tight embrace for a moment, noting with dismay that his son trembled from exhaustion. As he held Legolas, the tension of the last days finally left him. His relief that they had found his son and that he was in relatively good condition was immense. Finally he released Legolas and took him again by the shoulders, inspecting him critically. Legolas had a stab wound in his shoulder and numerous cuts and bruises but overall he didn't seem injured too badly. "Baranon and Aragorn's horse returned to the forest gate, so we knew something was wrong," he explained. "We set out to search for you and met Elrond on our way. His foresight showed him that you were in trouble so he decided to ride out with a party. Luckily he also saw your surroundings so we had a good guess where you were. We also found the tracks of the orcs so we knew that a large group was behind you."

Before Legolas could respond Elrond and Glorfindel came closer and at Elrond's sight Legolas rallied his last strength. "Aragorn," he said, "he's in the second cave. I hid him behind some boulders."

Elrond nodded in understanding and disappeared into the cave, closely followed by Glorfindel, who clasped Legolas' shoulder in passing.

Thranduil waved Celairdir over, who knelt down next to him to examine Legolas' injuries. Angon followed, hovering nearby, watching the three of them. His relief of seeing Legolas relatively well was obvious.

"Celairdir," Legolas greeted, surprised. He clearly hadn't expected the healer.

"Hello, my Prince. you manage to keep us busy," the healer greeted wryly. He started to assess Legolas' injuries, opened his pack and began to treat him, giving Thranduil a reassuring smile.

The king held his son's gaze. "What happened?" he asked softly.

Legolas winced as Celairdir touched the wound in his shoulder. "We were nearly a day's ride from the forest gate when we met a large group of orcs next to the river. As we tried to evade them, another group approached from the other side. During the fight Aragorn was pushed to the edge of a cliff, it crumbled and he fell down onto the rocks. I followed him but they started to loose a hail of arrows at us. There was no way of outrunning them with Aragorn unconscious so I had to take him with me into the river, to let the current carry us away. They couldn't follow so fast and I thought we had lost them but they were persistent."

"How long did you try to outrun the orcs?" Thranduil asked, noting that Legolas had kept the worst details to himself.

It took a moment for Legolas to answer, but finally he admitted, "five days."

Thranduil and Celairdir exchanged a look. They could imagine what these two simple words expressed. Days of worry about Aragorn, days of trying to get to safety, of searching for options and of desperation, realizing that the orcs were closing in.

Elrond and Glorfindel came out of the cave, Elrond carrying an unconscious Aragorn in his arms. He gently lowered his foster-son to the ground and started to assess his condition and to treat his injuries.

"How is he?" Legolas asked.

"He is not well but he'll live, given the proper care."

Legolas sagged in relief. Finally the long, desperate days were over. It was a small wonder.

After a while Elrond looked at Legolas. "Has he woken at all?"

"Shortly for a few times. He suffered a terrible headache then."

Elrond nodded his thanks and turned to Thranduil. "I have done all that I could out here but he needs to lie still and a real bed, we need to bring him to the palace."

"It's too far to the stronghold. There is an elven outpost not a day's ride from here. Let's take them there," Thranduil suggested.

Elrond looked up from where he tended Aragorn. "We need a stretcher. I dare not move him too much."

Thranduil nodded to Angon, who turned around and ordered some of his warriors to build a litter.

While the warriors started to work, Thranduil turned to Celairdir, who was still kneeling beside Legolas, tending his injuries.

"It's not as bad as it looks," the healer reassured him. The worst injury is his shoulder, the others are merely cuts," he said in a normal voice. As Thranduil went for his horse, he muttered quietly, "A lot of cuts."

Thranduil fetched clean clothes for Legolas from his pack. Clothes he had packed in the hope that they would find Legolas alive and they would be needed.

He returned to his son and Celairdir and watched as Celairdir finished treating Legolas' injuries. His son leaned his head on the cave wall, lines of exhaustion on his face. It was clear that he had reached his limit. Caring for the injured ranger, trying to outrun the orcs for days with his friend in tow and finally the long battle had depleted even his endurance.

Thranduil gently brushed hair out of his face. "Hold on a little longer. We will depart soon and when we reach the outpost, you can rest."

Legolas turned his head and locked tired eyes with his father. "I'm glad you came," he murmured. "I thought that this would be the end."

Thranduil swallowed heavily. He hadn't allowed himself to acknowledge how close it had been. Had they arrived just a little bit later it could have been too late. "I really don't want to think about it at the moment," he admitted.

Celairdir reached over and squeezed his arm in sympathy. It had been a time of worry for all of them. He was truly glad that their worst fears didn't come to reality. Not only because they loved Legolas but also for what his death would have done to his father.

Finally Celairdir was ready with his ministrations and Thranduil helped Legolas into a clean shirt and tunic. They moved into the cave where Legolas could change his breeches in private.

The warriors finished with the litter and four of them came over, placing Aragorn gently on it. Finally they were ready for departure. They had decided to let the orcs lie, it was more important to care for the injured and to reach the outpost.

"You ride with me," Thranduil said to Legolas, helping him to his feet and supporting him for the short walk to Thranduil's stallion. Legolas mounted first and his father swung up behind him.

Legolas looked around and saw Aragorn's litter fastened between two horses. Seeing that his friend was cared for, he slowly relaxed.

Looking around, Thranduil waited until everybody was ready, then he steered Berion forwards, Angon and Glorfindel falling in beside him, while Elrond stayed close to Aragorn's stretcher. Thranduil raised his hand and the small army made its way to the outpost.

* * *

During the ride Legolas relaxed against his father, too exhausted to try to keep himself upright the whole time. His father had an arm around his waist, holding him securely. The familiar smell of Thranduil surrounded him and he felt safe for the first time in many days. Sometimes he even drifted into reverie, only to jolt awake after a few minutes.

For Thranduil, having Legolas in front of him, feeling his living, warm body against him did a lot to release the last tension from the past days. He didn't care to remember the worry and dread that he felt during the long search.

Angon looked over to them and smiled as he saw Legolas leaning heavily against his father, head resting against Thranduil's shoulder. He could imagine what went through Thranduil's head, having his son back and safe in front of him. The relief he felt had to be immense.

They rode as fast as they could without jarring Aragorn too much and reached the outpost after a few hours. The elves of the outpost suddenly had to deal with their king and prince, the Lord of Imladris as well as the legendary Glorfindel and more than seventy other elves at their doors.

The captain of the outpost seemed flustered as he bowed before his king and the others. "Welcome, Sire, my Prince, my Lords. My name is Labolon. How may we serve you?"

Thranduil dismounted, helping Legolas off Berion and entrusting him to Celairdir's care for the moment, because Legolas had clearly reached his limit, needing help to stay on his feet. "We will need to stay for at least a few days. Lord Elrond needs a room where he can care for his foster-son."

Labolon waved an elf forward, who approached Elrond and asked him to come with him. Four elves took Aragorn's litter and followed.

"Sire, may I humbly offer you and the prince the use of my rooms?" Labolon offered.

"Thank you, but that won't be necessary, two guestrooms will be more than sufficient," Thranduil declined the offer.

"But…"

"Two guestrooms will be sufficient," Thranduil repeated firmly.

Labolon bowed again. "As you wish, Sire. Please follow me."

Thranduil put an arm around Legolas' waist and together they followed Labolon, letting the rest of the arrivals and the warriors of the outpost sort themselves out.

The outpost was relatively large, with several wooden buildings and walled in to prevent orc attacks. Labolon led them to one of the buildings and down a small corridor to the rooms at the end. He opened two doors. "I hope these will be sufficient, Sire," he said.

Thranduil only threw a short glance at them. "These will do for the next days. Thank you, Captain."

Labolon bowed again. "Sire, my Prince, if you require anything else just send for me." With that he left.

Thranduil ushered Legolas into one of the guestrooms and towards the bed. He pulled the blanket back and sat his son down on the bedside, then he divested him of his tunic and pulled his boots off. As soon as they were off, Legolas laid down, finally giving in to his exhaustion.

He barely felt that a blanket was spread over him and a hand brushed his brow lightly before he succumbed to his fatigue and fell into a deep sleep.

TBC


	6. Rest

Thranduil entered the room where his son lay. After Legolas had fallen asleep, he slept deeply and hadn't woken once for nearly two days now. Both Elrond and Celairdir had assured him that Legolas was relatively fine. His wounds weren't that bad, he was just totally exhausted. Even elven endurance had its limits and Legolas had reached his limits a long time ago, only sheer stubbornness had kept him going. Even if Thranduil knew that he could trust Elrond and Celairdir, it worried him that his son was sleeping without showing the slightest sign of waking. He was dead to the world, not even stirring when the noise level outside of the building was high.

He neared the bed Legolas was lying in, studying his son's features. The tight lines of exhaustion were gone and he slept peacefully. Although he still looked drawn, it was far better than when his father had first laid eyes on him.

Thranduil placed a plate of food on a table next to the bed, then he took the pitcher next to the plate, went to the window and poured the stale water away. He took a waterskin and filled fresh water into the jug. Expecting Legolas' waking, they kept food and water prepared. As he placed the jar carefully on the table, he looked down at his son again, only to find a pair of blue eyes gazing back at him.

Father and son stared at each other silently for a few moments until Thranduil had overcome his surprise. A smile lightened his features. "You're awake," he finally stated, sitting down on the bedside.

Legolas followed his father's movements with his gaze, wrinkling his forehead. He seemed to have trouble recalling the recent events. "Adar," he rasped, his voice rough with disuse. He slowly pushed himself into a sitting position.

Thranduil took the pitcher and filled a glass with water, silently handing it to his son. Legolas took it and swallowed the liquid slowly, the water easing his parched throat.

Thranduil studied him for a moment, taking in his appearance. "How do you feel?" he asked.

Legolas nodded, putting the glass back onto the table.

"Do you think you are able to eat something?"

Legolas hesitated a moment, then he nodded. "I feel starved."

"No wonder, you slept for a long time."

"Aragorn," Legolas exclaimed, suddenly remembering what had happened.

"He will be fine," Thranduil assured. "Elrond is with him. He is sure that he will recover fully."

"I need to see him," Legolas demanded, attempting to stand up.

His father put a hand on his shoulder and pushed him down. "Later, after you have eaten. It has been two days, a few more minutes won't matter."

Seeing Legolas' incredulous look he nodded. "You have slept for two days, you were more than exhausted. When you have eaten I'll bring you to his room."

"Two days," Legolas repeated, stunned.

"Yes," Thranduil confirmed, handing his son the plate of food.

As Legolas sat up straighter, he felt a bit dizzy but that quickly faded. He forced himself to eat slowly and not wolf everything down. He truly was starved.

After he had eaten Thranduil left him so he could wash and change into fresh clothes in privacy. As Legolas was ready, he went to Thranduil's room next to his and knocked at the door.

His father came out and inspected him critically, obviously satisfied with what he saw. "Ready?" he asked.

Legolas nodded.

Thranduil led Legolas to Aragorn's room, halting in front of the door. "I'll see you later, I have to talk to Angon." With that he left, knowing that maybe Elrond and Legolas wished to speak in private.

Legolas knocked quietly and on hearing Elrond bidding him enter he opened the door and went into the room.

Aragorn was lying in a bed, Elrond sitting in a chair beside him. He looked up as the prince entered and smiled. "Legolas," he greeted. "So you have finally woken."

Legolas came closer and gazed at Aragorn. The ranger looked much better than the last time he had seen him. "Yes, my Lord. How is he?"

"He had a fever for a while, but he is getting better. His injuries are also slowly healing. The head injury was bad but his concussion is improving and he should feel a lot better once he wakes."

"Has he regained consciousness at all?"

"Not yet, but I think he will wake soon."

Legolas looked closer at Aragorn, noting with satisfaction that he was sleeping peacefully, the lines of pain gone from his face. He softly touched his brow, noting that it was cool.

Elrond watched him and gazed at the younger elf. "Once more we are in your debt. You could have left Estel behind to save your own life." He raised his hand to prevent Legolas' outraged outburst. "I know that you would never do that but you _could_ have. Not everybody would have done what you did, putting his own life on the line for a friend."

"He would have done the same."

"Yes, certainly. But please just accept my gratitude. Estel is dear to us."

"I can understand that," Legolas said. "I have just met him for the third time and it feels like I have known him for centuries."

Elrond smiled softly. "He seems to have that effect on people." He looked down at his foster-son and pulled the blanket slightly up to his chin.

"You told him about his heritage," Legolas stated.

"It was time. I think it overwhelmed him for a while." Elrond looked regretfully at Aragorn. "It's a heavy burden to know that he is the last in the line of Isildur and the hope of men to end the evil. He didn't take it well at first."

"We talked about that," Legolas confirmed. "He struggles with the responsibility. I told him that he will grow into it like I did with my duties but I think he needs time to get used to the fact."

"It is good that he found a friend in you," Elrond said gratefully. "I hope you can help him with accepting his heritage."

"I will do my best," Legolas promised.

At that moment Aragorn shifted slightly and moaned softly.

Elrond and Legolas turned their attention to the young human.

"Estel?" Elrond asked. "Can you hear me?"

Aragorn turned his head in Elrond's direction, his eyelids fluttering. "Adar?" he murmured.

"Yes, my son. How do you feel?"

"My head hurts," Aragorn sighed.

"You have a concussion, but are on the mend," Elrond explained.

"Legolas?" the ranger asked.

"I'm here," Legolas assured him.

Aragorn finally managed to open his eyes, squinting in Legolas' direction. "We made it," he stated, surprised.

Legolas smiled. "Thanks to our fathers, yes."

Aragorn gave him a confused look and looked at his foster-father. "Where are we? How did you get here? You were in Imladris, were you not?"

Before Legolas could start with an explanation Elrond interceded, lifting his foster-son slightly and letting him drink medicine he had prepared. "That should help with the pain," he stated, lowering Aragorn back down. "You also need rest, explanations can wait until you feel better." He stroked Aragorn's brow. "Sleep now," he ordered gently.

The ranger was already exhausted so he closed his eyes obediently and slipped into sleep again.

Elrond and Legolas exchanged relieved smiles.

The door opened and Glorfindel entered, casting a glance to the bed. "How is he?" he asked.

"He just woke up." Elrond was glad that he could give his friend good news.

Glorfindel smiled. "That's good. Was he lucid?"

"Yes, although his head still hurt."

"That was to be expected. Since he's better, what about you go and get some rest? I'll stay with him."

Legolas saw an argument coming and decided to leave the two elves to it. "I would like to come back later, if it's alright?" he asked, turning to Elrond.

"Of course," Elrond agreed.

Legolas stood. "My Lords," he said in greeting and left the room, leaving Elrond and Glorfindel alone.

Glorfindel neared the bed and stood next to Elrond, gazing down at Aragorn. "He was lucky that Legolas was with him. "

"Yes." Elrond sighed. "I know that he needs to set out on his own and interact more with other men but that won't lessen my worry for him. Especially now, that on his first longer foray he had so much bad luck."

Glorfindel squeezed Elrond's shoulder. "That was bad luck indeed and a coincidence. He needs to meet his people and learn their ways. Try not to worry too much."

Elrond sighed wearily and drew a hand over his face. "I'll try to but it is hard, letting him go."

"I know." Glorfindel pulled him up from the chair. "You are tired. Go and rest, I'll stay with him." With that he took the seat himself and motioned to the door, indicating for Elrond that he should leave.

Elrond reluctantly left Aragorn in Glorfindel's care but he knew he wouldn't rest, so he decided to go outside.

Celairdir sat idly on a bench in the sun, sorting his herbs as Elrond took in his surroundings and he decided to join him. During the pursuit they had too much on their minds to talk about their profession so he was looking forward to have a longer talk with his fellow healer. "Hello Celairdir," he greeted.

Celairdir looked up from his work. "Elrond," he returned the greeting warmly.

"May I join you?"

"Of course."

Although Celairdir didn't possess the skills of Elrond, he was a formidable healer and Elrond was glad to be able to talk to him again about their work. In addition he finally saw an opportunity to give Celairdir a hint about the poison Legolas carried without breaking the trust of the younger elf.

They talked for a while and Elrond slowly steered the conversation to what poisons the orcs were using at that time and the antidotes. He and Celairdir created a list of these poisons and antidotes. A few were even new to Elrond. Mirkwood unfortunately faced the brunt of the dark forces, where Imladris mostly had to deal with the orcs from the Hithaeglir.

"Anything else that's new?" Celairdir asked.

Elrond shook his head. "No. Although I would stock up on the antidote to avorngûr if I were you."

Celairdir looked surprised. "This poison is rare and the orcs don't use it."

"Call it a bout of foresight," Elrond said, hoping that Celairdir would follow his advise. "I would also have it close," he added.

He didn't know if it was ever needed, but he hoped that Legolas would have a chance at least if he ever decided to use the poison and was found in time.

Celairdir gave him an odd look but he wrote the poison down. "I have another information for you," he began and then he started to tell Elrond about the shadow that had affected Legolas' fëa, how they had treated it with athelas and what conclusions and solutions they had come up with.

Elrond listened intently. "These are disturbing news. Thranduil wrote me that three Nazgul settled in Dol Guldur. It is sad that your respite didn't last long after Sauron was driven out. Obviously their presence and the long contamination from Sauron cause more harm than we expected."

"It looks that way," Celairdir agreed. "I think we have done what we could to prevent other warriors from being affected. Now we can only wait and see."

Elrond nodded. "I agree," he said thoughtfully. "I can't think of another measure you could take at the moment."

"When do you think Estel is well enough to travel to the stronghold?" Celairdir asked.

"His concussion is better. I think in one or two days we can risk it."

Celairdir nodded. "I think Captain Labolon will be glad when everything is back to normal. He seems a bit overwhelmed."

Elrond laughed. "I can't blame him for it. I think we would have reacted the same if we were in his place."

Celairdir chuckled then they turned to other topics.

* * *

As Aragorn woke the next time his head felt much better. He blinked and his sight cleared slowly. The sun shone brightly and outside of his room seemed to be a tree because the sunlight cast moving patterns of shadow and light on the wall. He drew a deep breath and moved his head. His gaze met that of his foster-father who sat quietly at his bedside.

"Good morning," Elrond greeted. "How do you feel?"

Aragorn took a moment to check his body. His broken arm throbbed dully, but the sharp pain he had felt before was gone. "Better," he stated. "The pain is greatly diminished."

Elrond nodded in satisfaction. "That's good," he said.

There was a slight noise and as Aragorn turned his head, he saw Legolas stepping towards his bed. He hadn't noticed him before. "Legolas," he greeted, surprised.

The elf smiled. "It's good to see you awake."

"It's good to see you, too. What happened?" Aragorn's memory was fragmented. He remembered that they had been in a fight with orcs but after that everything was hazy. The only thing he recollected was the pain he had felt and that Legolas had seemed worried.

Legolas sat down on his bedside. "What do you remember?"

"Not much." Aragorn told Legolas and Elrond what he remembered.

"You had a concussion and were unconscious for a long time," Elrond explained. "It's no wonder that your memory is hazy. You asked how I come to be here. My foresight showed me that you two were in trouble so we rode from Imladris in the hope that we wouldn't be too late."

"We?" Aragorn asked.

"Glorfindel and a troupe of warriors accompanied me."

Aragorn turned to Legolas and the prince told him what had happened since he fell off the cliff.

The ranger closed his eyes for a moment, already exhausted again. "I'm sorry that I couldn't be of help," he murmured.

"It wasn't your fault," Legolas assured him. "I'm glad that you're going to be well, I was worried as you didn't wake up for so long."

Aragorn nodded silently. "Thank you for rescuing me." His voice grew weaker with the moment and he was nearly asleep again.

"You would have done the same for me," Legolas answered. "Now rest, you need it."

The ranger's eyes closed and his breathing grew deeper as he succumbed to sleep.

Elrond touched his forehead to check his temperature, then he pulled the blanket up a bit. He too would need some time to come to terms with what had happened. He had been deeply worried for his foster-son and was glad that he could finally relax.

Legolas smiled with relief. "I'm glad that he's feeling better."

Elrond nodded. "In one or two days he will be able to travel, so we can continue on to the palace."

"Will you stay for a while?"

"Until Estel is better in any case. I think we will accompany him to Lothlorien then."

Legolas nodded. "That's good. He plans to travel on to Rohan, after that."

Elrond sighed. "I know that I have to let him go, meet his people and learn their customs, but it is hard. He is like a son to me and I can't protect him any longer."

"He will be fine," Legolas assured him. "This encounter with the orcs was simply bad luck. He did well in the battle until he fell off the cliff."

"I hope so," Elrond said quietly. "Meeting the Rohirrim and riding with them will be good for him. Hopefully he won't travel alone for a while then."

"He has a way to make people like him, so I think he will find friends relatively fast." Legolas gazed at the sleeping ranger. " It's hard for him to know that so much hope rests in him."

Elrond sighed. "I wish Isildur would have had the strength and wisdom to destroy the ring. Much could have been prevented, then. He gazed at Legolas searchingly. "Celairdir told me about the shadow. May I?" he asked, indicating that he wanted to examine Legolas.

The prince nodded his assent.

Elrond got up and stood in front of Legolas, placing a hand on his brow and one on his chest and concentrating. After a few moments he withdrew and sat down again opposite the younger elf. "Celairdir was correct. I can still sense faint remnants of the shadow but they're fading, so you will be alright."

Legolas nodded in acknowledgement. "It was a disturbing experience," he admitted. "I have been injured several times but never before has my fëa been affected thus."

"I can understand that it has been worrying you. Celairdir told me that you already took steps to avoid too much exposure to the shadow in the future."

This time it was Legolas who sighed. "I hope that will be enough. The shadow lifted for a while after Sauron had been driven from Dol Guldur but now Nazgul have settled there and the shadow grows again."

Elrond squeezed his shoulder sympathetically. "I hope that it won't be too long now until the final battle will be fought and the darkness conquered."

Legolas smiled wistfully. "You seem so certain that Sauron will be defeated. I wish I had your confidence."

"Sometimes hope is all that is left," Elrond said quietly, looking down at Aragorn.

Legolas followed his gaze. "You named him aptly," he said with a smile.

Elrond returned his smile and squeezed his shoulder again in a silent gesture of reassurance. 

TBC


	7. What The Future May Bring

Aragorn's condition improved steadily over the next two days so that Thranduil, in consultation with Elrond, decided that they would head for the stronghold, where Aragorn could continue his recovery.

The headache of the young human was better but due to his injuries he wasn't able to ride yet.

So a travois was fastened between two horses again and Aragorn placed carefully on it. Elrond had mixed a sleeping draught and given it to his foster-son so that he could sleep while being prepared for transport and would not experience any pain from the unavoidable jostling.

Legolas mounted a horse from the outpost, glad that he could ride on his own. He steered his mount to the front beside his father and Angon. Celairdir had checked his injuries and been satisfied with his progress. The cuts were already nearly fully healed and the wound to his shoulder also looked good. It would cause trouble if he needed to fight with his knives or draw his bow but they didn't expect any problems and Celairdir was confident that in a few more days all that would remain from this latest adventure would be the memory.

Thranduil exchanged words of farewell with Labolon then he gazed at his son. "Ready to go home?"

Legolas nodded, smiling. For a while he had thought he wouldn't see his home again, so he was glad that they would finally return.

His father returned the smile and turned to Elrond. "Ready?" he asked, making sure that Estel was securely settled before they started the journey.

The healer nodded and Thranduil gave the signal to move out. Angon and his warriors flanked their king and prince protectively as the group started the ride to the stronghold.

They travelled at a leisurely pace, their numbers giving them the security that they wouldn't be bothered by orcs or spiders. No creature of the dark would dare to attack such a large group. Aragorn woke in the afternoon and Elrond made sure that he was comfortable and didn't suffer any pain.

It took them three days to reach the stronghold. Word had spread quickly that Legolas was missing and that Thranduil had left with Angon and the troop to search for him, so they were greeted with relieved smiles from the elves living around the stronghold when they saw their king and prince riding at the front of the group.

A patrol had spotted them a few hours from the stronghold and sent a runner ahead, so Feron and Dilloth were alarmed and waited for them in front of the stronghold. As they rode nearer, Galdor came out and joined them, smiling at Legolas and raising an eyebrow. Legolas returned the smile, knowing that his friend would want a full account of what had happened.

They stopped their horses and dismounted and grooms appeared to lead the animals away. Aragorn's stretcher was carefully unfastened and lowered to the ground.

Feron had been informed about the presence of the Imladris' elves so he turned to Elrond and Glorfindel first. "Welcome to the woodland realm, my Lords. My Lord Elrond, if you will follow Celairdir, he will lead you and your foster-son to the healing halls."

Elrond nodded. "Thank you." He turned to Celairdir, who had already ordered elves to take the stretcher and turned to lead the way.

"Lord Glorfindel," Feron addressed the balrog slayer, "Dilloth will show you and your warriors your quarters."

"Thank you, Lord Feron," Glorfindel said and motioned for his warriors to follow him.

Dilloth gave both Thranduil and Legolas a relieved smile before he turned and fell in step with Glorfindel. The two knew each other from the Last Alliance and former visits and they started exchanging news as soon as they started walking.

Feron finally turned to Thranduil and Legolas. "Welcome back." He couldn't suppress the huge smile that slowly spread out over his face. "You really had us worried," this was addressed to Legolas.

Legolas returned the smile. "Thank you. Things didn't look good for a while. I'm glad that Adar went after us." He and Galdor greeted each other with a quick embrace and Galdor inquired quietly about his health.

Feron turned to Angon. "I see you managed to keep him out of trouble."

"Yes, although I couldn't prevent him from charging headfirst into the fray," Angon replied with a disapproving tone, scowling at Thranduil.

The king only shrugged, unrepentant. He turned to Feron and smiled wryly. "You seem to enjoy taking charge. I trust Elrond and Glorfindel have guestrooms in the family quarters?"

"Of course," Feron confirmed.

Thranduil gestured for them to go inside and they turned and entered the stronghold. "So, what happened?" Feron asked.

Legolas grimaced. "We had trouble with orcs."

"How come Lord Elrond and Lord Glorfindel are with you?" Galdor chimed in.

"Elrond's foresight showed him that Legolas and his foster-son were in trouble," Thranduil explained.

They reached the royal family quarters and he turned to the others. "I'm sure Dilloth would also like to know what happened. Let's meet in an hour for lunch, then we will tell you everything."

The others agreed and Angon and Galdor departed, while Thranduil and Legolas sought their quarters to refresh themselves after the long journey.

* * *

A few days later Aragorn's concussion had healed so far that Elrond allowed him out of bed. His broken arm still bothered him but other than that he felt quite well again. The first day out of bed he had been a bit shaky but that soon passed.

After the evening meal Thranduil and Legolas together with Elrond, Glorfindel and Aragorn had retreated to the royal family's sitting room. Now they were sitting in front of the fireplace, enjoying the wine Galion had served earlier.

Aragorn had asked Legolas for a full account of what had happened since for most of it he had been unconscious or couldn't remember. Legolas had told him a short version in the camp but he wanted to know the details. Legolas had reluctantly done so, and although he kept to the facts and tried to keep his emotions out of it the others could tell that it had been a trying and desperate time for him.

"Estel, we will accompany you to Lothlorien," Elrond stated. "Legolas told me you plan to travel to Rohan after that?"

"Yes," Aragorn confirmed. "I think it's a good start."

Elrond nodded in agreement. "You should visit Gondor too. They are your people, after all, and their customs don't differ much from those of the Rohirrim."

Aragorn nodded, satisfied that he had a plan for the near future.

Glorfindel leant back in his chair. "Well, it surely was quite an adventure you had on your first trip. Let's hope your next travels will be less exciting."

Aragorn grimaced. "I sure hope so."

Legolas nodded in agreement. He took a swig of his wine. "So, how are the twins?"

"They were abroad," Elrond explained. "Otherwise I wouldn't have been able to leave them behind."

Glorfindel chuckled. "Definitely not. They would have insisted to come."

Elrond smiled. "Now poor Erestor not only has to take care of Imladris but also to explain to them on their return where we went off to."

The talk turned to Imladris and the latest news of elves both Thranduil and Legolas knew.

Glorfindel was just telling a story about a warrior from his guard when suddenly he lowered his voice and glanced over to Legolas. Aragorn followed his gaze and smiled. Lulled by their voices, the warmth of the fire and the feeling of security that permeated the stronghold Legolas had slipped into reverie. His eyes were staring into the fire but they were glazed with sleep.

Thranduil had noticed that too, because he stood and approached his son. Aragorn was alarmed, remembering the happenings at their campsite, but surely the king knew how to handle his son?

Thranduil's hand hovered a moment about Legolas, then he lowered it so it rested on his son's shoulder. Legolas' eyes cleared and he straightened, looking up at his father.

"It's late, go to bed," Thranduil ordered softly.

Legolas nodded, then he stood and addressed the others. "I bid you all a good night." He left and as Thranduil turned to his guests again he was met with three disbelieving faces.

It took him a moment to realize why they were so astonished then he smiled. "I touch his fëa first, so he knows it's me," he explained. He looked at Glorfindel. "He was mortified as he told me what happened."

Elrond laughed. "Glorfindel got a good ribbing out of it. Our famous balrog slayer laid low by the Prince of Eryn Galen."

Glorfindel smirked. "It was definitely an interesting experience. He has lightning fast reflexes and finding myself on my back with his hands around my throat is not something I would like to repeat."

"Try one of his knives at your throat instead," Aragorn muttered.

At the incredulous looks from Elrond and Glorfindel he added, "He thought that Elladan and Elrohir had warned me as we last visited here."

Glorfindel laughed heartily while Elrond just shook his head.

Thranduil joined their laughter but after a moment there was a profound sadness in his gaze.

"What's wrong?" Elrond asked softly.

The king took a deep breath. "It pains me that we fight evil for so long that our warriors don't feel safe any more. That even in sleep they are ready for battle in an instant."

The others exchanged a sympathetic look. Elrond and Glorfindel witnessed the plight of their friends for a long time now and Aragorn had heard more than enough about the struggle of the woodland realm.

"We will prevail," Elrond said firmly, leaning forward and grasping Thranduil's shoulder. His eyes met that of the king in silent reassurance.

Thranduil nodded, although reluctantly. "I hope you are right. Sometimes it's hard to believe in victory any longer," he said softly.

"You told me that Dol Guldur is occupied again?" Elrond asked.

"Yes," the king confirmed, giving Elrond a sad little smile. "Our reprieve didn't last long." His look grew disturbed. "Legolas took a small scouting party south as the activity there grew again. They got very close to the tower and discovered that three Nazgul have settled there." From the look on his face they could tell that there was more to this story. Obviously the scouting party was lucky to have made it back.

"I'm sorry," Elrond said. "As we drove Sauron out I hoped you would have peace now. Mithrandir thinks he fled back to Mordor."

"Obviously he didn't want to give up his hold here in the north," Thranduil said wryly.

Glorfindel leaned forwards and fixed the king with a gaze. "What happened?"

So Thranduil told them how Legolas and five other warriors scouted south, nearing Dol Guldur and discovering that orcs once more inhabited the tower. As they carefully explored around the building they encountered a new danger. Dark creatures that struck terror into the hearts of those who met them. As Legolas' group first encountered them, they accidentally attracted their attention and the wraiths started to hunt them. The elves were lucky that these creatures obviously couldn't see, they oriented themselves on noise. So they kept to the trees, concealing themselves from the orcs that were also hunting them by the command of the wraiths, fighting to suppress any noise and to keep the terror in check that the wraiths struck into their hearts. It were a few trying days until they were in safer parts of the forest but the group managed to escape and made it back to the stronghold. From their reports Thranduil knew what these beings were. The Nazgul, the Ringwraiths, were back.

Elrond, Glorfindel and Aragorn listened intently. They hadn't known that Legolas had met the Nazgul. Elrond only had received a letter from Thranduil, telling about the new danger in Dol Guldur. That it had been so close for Legolas and his warriors was new to him.

"They were lucky that they made it back," Glorfindel stated grimly.

"Indeed," Elrond agreed. "When did this happen?"

"A year ago," Thranduil explained. "After that I forbade any patrols to venture too close to Dol Guldur. They are ordered to keep their distance."

Elrond nodded thoughtfully. "Celairdir told me of the shadow Legolas suffered. I examined him myself, the last remnants are fading, so he was lucky indeed. I think it is a good idea to exchange the warriors regularly and to give them long breaks between their next turn in the south."

Thranduil nodded tiredly. "We will see how that goes."

For a while they were silent while they drank their wine. Aragorn felt pleasantly warm from the fire and felt weariness growing within. Finally he couldn't suppress a yawn any longer.

Glorfindel put a hand on his shoulder. "Come, Estel, it's late. Let's retire, too."

Aragorn nodded and turned towards Elrond and Thranduil. "I bid you a good night."

"Good night, Estel, sleep well," Elrond replied.

The king also bid them a good night and Aragorn and Glorfindel left.

Thranduil took a sip of his wine. "You care very much for Estel," he observed.

Elrond smiled softly. "He arrived at Imladris when he was two years old and managed to capture our hearts within a very short time."

Thranduil swirled the wine in his goblet, looking pensive. "I commend your bravery. You took him in as your foster-son despite the fact that he is mortal." He saw Elrond's indignant look, obviously thinking that he intended to slight mortals. "To know that you will lose him after a short mortal live," he clarified. "It must be very hard to bear. I think I couldn't do it. Alone the thought of losing Legolas…" Thranduil shuddered, he couldn't imagine to lose his son, but if that ever happened, there was at least the small consolation that he would see him again some day. The knowledge that elves who had passed to the Halls of Mandos would be released and re-embodied one day was the only thing that made the loss of his father and wife endurable. But the thought of facing endless centuries without Legolas was still impossible to bear.

Elrond looked pained. He swirled the wine in his cup, looking down and sighed. "Yes, the thought bothers me greatly," he said quietly. "That he will pass beyond the circles of the world…" he fell silent, not only the grief he would feel for Aragorn on his mind but also the grief for his twin brother, who had chosen a mortal life.

Thranduil guessed his thoughts. He reached out and put a consoling hand on Elrond's forearm, squeezing gently. "I'm sorry that I brought that up," he apologized.

"It's alright," Elrond assured him. "Actually, it's good to have somebody to talk about it." He took a deep breath. "But fortunately Estel is still young and has a long lifetime ahead, so I will enjoy what time we have together."

Thranduil nodded approvingly. "A wise attitude." He took the bottle of wine and filled both their goblets again. "Estel is an exceptional young man. He is well mannered and managed to befriend a few of our warriors in the short time he has been here."

"I'm glad to hear that." Elrond took a sip of his wine. "Fortunately he is lacking the arrogance Isildur had. So I hope he will succeed where Isildur failed."

"We can only hope for the best," Thranduil said softly.

There was a companionable silence as both of them were lost in thought and slowly emptied their goblets. Finally Elrond too retired to his rooms, wishing the king a good night.

* * *

It was early in the afternoon and Glorfindel decided to go for a walk. It had been a very long time since his last visit to the stronghold but he still found his way around and wanted to visit the gardens that were just a short walking distance from the palace.

He left his chambers and started on his way when he saw Legolas coming down the corridor. The younger elf was carrying his bow.

"Glorfindel," Legolas greeted.

"Legolas," Glorfindel returned the greeting. "you look like you are going out?" He knew that Legolas was freed from his duties for the duration of their stay so he couldn't be on his way to a patrol.

"I was heading to the training grounds," the prince explained.

"Ah," Glorfindel said in understanding. He had sparred often with Legolas when he visited the Valley and had helped him to regain his form after a nasty incident with orcs on his way to Imladris. He decided that he also could use some practice and that he could visit the gardens later. "Do you want to spar?" he asked.

Legolas smirked. "You do realize that we'll draw quite a crowd of spectators?"

Glorfindel smirked back. "Do you care?"

"Not in the slightest." Legolas turned and together they walked down the corridor.

They made their way to the open place where the training grounds were located. Legolas showed Glorfindel where the training weapons were kept and the older elf chose a sword while Legolas took his sparring knives. So armed they moved into one of the marked spaces.

As Legolas had predicted, it didn't take long for the first elves to notice that their prince was sparring against the legendary Glorfindel and to drift over to watch.

Thranduil and Angon, who had been walking from the king's study after talking about a planned visit to Dale, also noticed the excitement and followed its source to the training grounds. Upon seeing the two blond warriors sparring, they made their way over. At the line that marked the training field they met Elrond and Aragorn, who had also just arrived.

"I see you didn't want to miss this either," Elrond greeted them, speaking softly to not disturb the opponents.

"Certainly not," Thranduil confirmed, not taking his eyes from his son and the balrog slayer. "I haven't been able to watch them spar for a long time."

Elrond nodded in understanding. Since the shadow had grown over Mirkwood, Thranduil hadn't been able to visit Imladris except for the last time a few years ago when he had come because Legolas had been attacked and tortured by orcs in the mountains and had been on the brink of death. After he had sufficiently recovered Legolas had sparred with Glorfindel to get back in form but they had done so in a secluded place without onlookers.

"Legolas certainly can keep up with Glorfindel," Angon observed with satisfaction and for a while they just watched silently.

Glorfindel and Legolas were fairly evenly matched. Glorfindel was a seasoned warrior with a lot of battle experience and an expert with the sword but Legolas had also seen several centuries of skirmishes and battle and was deadly with the twin knives. So even if he was much older than Legolas that wasn't necessarily an advantage for Glorfindel.

Legolas attacked, feigning right, evading Glorfindel's counter and coming at him with his left knife. In the last moment Glorfindel dodged the blow with a swift turn, bringing his sword around and trying to catch Legolas during his move with a hit to his side. Legolas twisted out of the way, countering with one of his blades instead and returning the attack with his other blade aiming for the older elf's chest. For a while this went on, each of them fighting relentlessly, searching for the slightest opening to score a hit.

Aragorn was impressed. The two elves moved so fast that mortal eyes could barely follow them.

Legolas ducked one attack from Glorfindel, using his right foot and kicking at the balrog slayer's feet while parrying his sword with his knife. He managed to make him stumble back, immediately using that opening to press forward and get past Glorfindel's defense to place one of his training knives against his throat. The older elf froze, then he smiled, stepped back and bowed lightly to Legolas, acknowledging the hit.

The crowd erupted in cheering, while the two elves resumed the opening stance for the next round. Again they moved so fast that Aragorn had trouble following their movements.

The duel went on for several minutes when finally Glorfindel attacked in a flurry of moves. Legolas backed away, parrying the blows until Glorfindel managed to deal him a strike to his wrist. Using the moment it took for Legolas to regain his composure he slipped past the younger elf's defense and scored a hit to his ribs. Legolas acknowledged the point with a smile before they stepped back into guard position and carried on.

The sparring match continued for another thirty minutes before both elves concluded it with a light bow to each other. They put their training weapons away and made their way over to Thranduil, Angon, Aragorn and Elrond while the other onlookers slowly dispersed.

"Impressive," Aragorn said, smiling at them. "I could hardly follow, for you were moving so fast."

"Indeed," Thranduil agreed, "you were quite the entertainment and it was a pleasure to watch." There was a note of barely hidden pride in his voice.

Legolas smiled a bit embarrassed. "Glorfindel taught me well," he praised the older elf.

"You were a good student," Glorfindel returned the compliment, smiling at the prince.

Elrond clapped them both on the shoulder. "I think I saw a few wagers being made," he smirked.

Legolas turned to him. "Really?"

Thranduil laughed. "Our people love a good bet so that doesn't really surprise me."

Glorfindel shook his head, chuckling.

They started walking in the direction of the royal quarters, Aragorn and Legolas slightly ahead.

"Once you're healed we should let you fight against Galdor," Legolas suggested. "I'm sure our people would greatly underestimate you."

Aragorn choked. "You would throw me to the wolves and bet on me?"

Legolas laughed and clapped Aragorn on the back. "I'm sure you would do well."

Thranduil chimed in from behind. "He would just throw you to the wolves. No betting for a member of the royal family. But it's an interesting idea. I would like to see how you would do."

Glorfindel smirked. "He is not too bad, I can tell you that. I think I like the idea."

"Glorfindel," Aragorn complained.

Elrond smiled and watched them as they bantered. Suddenly his sight wavered and a vision appeared. For a moment Elrond didn't see Aragorn and Legolas as they were now but on a battlefield.

It was a vision he was familiar with by now. They were battling a large horde of orcs, easterlings and other creatures of Sauron in front of a burning city. The first time he had had this vision he was unsure who the young man beside Legolas was but by now he was fairly certain that it was Aragorn, only older.

He was wearing dark clothes, like the rangers preferred them, and the last remnants of youth he carried at the moment were gone. He looked older, more assured of himself.

Elrond shook himself mentally and tried to hide his disquiet. He considered his newest bout of foresight. It seemed as if his foster-son and Legolas were destined for something great, why else would he see this again and again?

Elrond watched Aragorn and Legolas talking and laughing and wondered what the future might bring for these two. He decided that the only way to know was to have patience, their fate would reveal itself in time. Until then he could only wait and hope for the best.

END


End file.
